The present invention relates generally to electrical connectors, and more specifically to connector apparatus for achieving versatile connections between bus boards having one or more layers and electrical devices having leads which extend through holes in the bus boards.
Various techniques and forms of apparatus have been devised for completing electrical connections between electrical devices and circuit boards or power supply bus boards. Many of these techniques and apparatus involve the use of holes in the circuit or bus boards through which leads of the electrical devices or device connectors can be inserted. It is, of course, known to solder the leads in place after insertion. Another known technique involves the use of deformable bushings, one of which at least partially surrounds each lead and is pressed into the surrounding hole in the circuit or bus board. Such an electrical coupling is the subject of U.S. Pat. No. 3,391,375 issued to W. D. Richards on July 2, 1968. These techniques are basically limited to single layer boards, and result in essentially permanent connections, thus complicating the process of making circuit modifications.
It has relatively recently become common to assemble electrical and electronic apparatus from circuits fabricated on printed circuit boards which are electrically coupled by means of edge card connectors. Fixed portions of the connectors are frequently mounted on a back plane or ground plane, and are provided with pins which extend through holes in the back/ground plane. Interconnections may be made between some of the pins by wrapping flexible conductors around the pins. Such interconnections are produced by certain automatic equipment designated by the trademark Wire Wrap.
A common bus board is frequently used for supplying electrical potential to predetermined pins of each of a plurality of connectors for powering circuitry on mating circuit boards. Where Wire Wrap type interconnection pins are provided, connections between predetermined pins and the back plane and/or bus board may be achieved with conductive bushings. Other pins may be insulated from the board by means of insulating bushings.
Frequently the back plane/bus board/connector assembly is produced according to a user specification by a jobber who specializes in such assembly tasks. This procedure facilitates economical and uniform production of the assemblies. However, the assemblies so produced lack versatility in that the connections between the bus board and the connectors are firmly fixed at the time of assembly, and changes can be made thereafter only with considerable difficulty. In addition, this construction technique is not readily adaptable to electrical apparatus in which multilayer bus boards are needed to supply several different electrical potentials.
The applicants have devised unique connection apparatus which permits versatile connections between electrical leads of the Wire Wrap type and multilayer bus boards. The connections may be altered in the field without special tools. Connections are easily made between any level in a multilayer bus board assembly and a pin extending through the assembly. Accordingly, many of the disadvantages of prior art electrical apparatus construction are reduced or eliminated.